Your Local Solution to Curb Global Warming via Efficient Energy Use
Energy is fundamental to the quality of our lives. We cannot conceive of development without supply of sustainable energy. But it is becoming increasingly clear that we need sources of energy that have no adverse impact on our environment. The prospect of irreversible climate change coupled with energy security issues necessitate an urgency to shift rapidly to low-carbon, efficient and environmentally-friendly energy systems, regardless of the industry involved.
In such energy systems, energy will come primarily from renewable resources, which are naturally replaced. Thus it is not surprising that the search for energy alternatives involving locally available and renewable resources is one of the main concerns of governments, scientists and business people worldwide. Usually, however, technological innovations are required to harness these renewable energy resources.
A case in point is the palm oil industry. The large palm oil industry in Malaysia and Indonesia is unique in that it presents an abundance of biomass wastes, practically in its own backyard. Energy harnessed from biomass waste is considered ‘carbon neutral’, as the carbon dioxide released in combustion is assumed to be compensated by the CO2 absorbed during plant growth. While this biomass is a valuable renewable energy resource, its potential has yet to be harnessed fully.
The impediment to greater exploitation comes neither from a shortage of biomass nor a lack of recognition from the palm oil industry as to the value of its inherent renewable energy potential, but the fact that presently palm oil mills consume most of their biomass for their own energy use. Unfortunately, at the moment, most palm oil mills are extremely inefficient in their energy use, owing mainly to a lack of appropriate technology to optimise energy use utilising the readily available biomass. Thus innovation in technology to optimise the use of renewable energy in palm oil mills has long been wanting.
However, this scenario is about to change with the availability of game-changing innovative technologies to revolutionise and contribute to a significant increase in the production of clean energy from palm oil mill operations in the near future.
“These energy saving technologies will help palm oil mill operators acquire reliable and efficient systems, both in terms of – surplus electricity generation as well as biomass fuel release and at the same time, open up new economic opportunities. Some of the more important benefits these new technologies can accord mill operators include:
- A significant decrease in the energy / fossil fuel use in palm oil mill operation;
- Increased energy production from domestic biomass renewable resources;
- Providing viable electricity and energy alternatives for the local industrial community for their sustainable operations, assisting them to go green as well; and
- Curbing global warming.”
The technological innovations revolutionise the energy use in a palm oil mill by providing for the simultaneous energy efficient palm oil extraction processes at the palm oil mill coupled with a traditional, biomass fired steam boiler and back pressure steam turbine operating as a combined heat and power (CHP) plant but in an innovative and creative way. Reducing demand on electricity and heat for palm oil extraction processes are hence key elements of the strategy to increasing energy access by freeing up more renewable energy for use outside the palm oil mill.
What matters more than the cause of global warming is what can we do about it, in particular, what can business do about it?
Corporate citizens are increasingly feeling a passion to do their share to abate global warming. A vision to address the present global concern on environmental protection and sustainable development is inspiring and spurring the business community on to being more innovative.
It is commendable that as a business community, the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) has stipulated in their Principles and Criteria since the year 2005 for palm oil mills to optimise the use of renewable energy as a sustainability criterion.
An Innovative Technological Breakthrough…
To all Palm Oil Mill Operators – exciting news!
Here it is –
A practical solution to global environment challenges and an improvement to the bottom line via innovative local engineering practices.
Drastic times call for drastic measures.
The time has come for mill operators to be on the lookout for anything that can improve life as we know it in traditional palm oil mills. ‘Business as Usual’ is not good enough anymore. It doesn’t have to be.
We are pleased to offer a viable, green and readily available innovation for your consideration.
Scepticism aside, we offer viable innovative solutions for your immediate adoption that will boost your public image and earn you money. In any case there is still the matter of having to comply with new and ever-changing benchmarks and trade-imposed requirements for palm oil thrust upon operators in the form of world-recognised sustainability standards for palm oil mill operators.
Adoption of our innovative solutions will contribute to economical consumption of energy and efficient harnessing of clean energy from biomass resources available at your palm oil mill! Really? How?
The answer lies in combining thinking-out-of-the-box engineering with innovation to deliver sustainable, workable, solutions. The technologies offered are something new which has not been available up to now.
With our technology, your mill will be able to take advantage of your unique access to abundant biomass and output clean energy for self use and export to other industries, reduce use of fossil fuel and curb global warming.
Yes, we are aware that many palm oil mills have taken the initiative to utilise some of their biomass. But our innovative technologies take optimization to use of renewable energy at palm oil mills up a notch to a whole, new level – unimaginable till now. The innovative technologies offer solutions to a number of optimization problems in energy saving that have not yet been addressed adequately.
The innovative technologies introduce several innovative processes where the temperatures of the palm oil extraction processes are optimised for energy savings together with improvement in process efficiency and product quality. The reduction in process energy use allows for less process steam consumption, which in turn allows for lower steam boiler capacity and lesser amount of biomass consumed by the boiler to supply the steam.
We avoid the operational challenges of condensing extraction steam turbine to generate more power while supplying process steam to the palm oil mill process. We recognise that besides higher capital expenditure, maintaining vacuum and cooling water circulation for a condensing turbine is difficult in a rural agricultural setting where the palm oil mills are located. Thus, the mill energy system is configured as an energy efficient combined heat and power (CHP) plant with a straight back pressure steam turbine supplying all its exit steam to mill process heating.
Just to what extent do the proposed innovative technologies offer sustainable solutions to your mill or company and the environment?
We will walkthrough the answer,
Let us take the case of the following scenario:
- A 60-tonne per hour typical palm oil mill;
- Processing about 400,000 tonnes of FFB per year; and
- Using the proposed solutions with proven conventional biomass steam boiler and back-pressure steam turbine.
The technologies can offer:
- A generation of process steam & saving of 36,000 tonnes excess biomass for export, and
- A generation of 6 MW clean electricity & saving of 5 MW excess electricity for export.
And avoid the following:
- Condensing steam turbine and associated problem in maintaining vacuum,
- power consumption for cooling system,
- water usage for cooling system,
- capital and operating/maintenance costs of biogas engines,
- capital and operating costs of grid connection for biogas electricity export, and
- diesel engine running for weekend electricity supply
Note:
- Empty Fruit Bunch (EFB) as energy potential is not factored in, as it is customarily recycled into the fields as organic fertilizers.
- Biogas from the palm oil mill effluent treatment is fired in the mill steam boiler.
- The 36,000 tonnes of biomass fuel released for export can displace about 14 ktoe equivalent of fossil fuel oil for industrial heating or can be used for generating additional net 6 MW of clean electricity.
- The innovative solutions involve simple, cost effective and easy to implement proprietary technologies.
Your choice… Global warming or Global greening?
to this 
…YOU have the power to choose…
The world needs you…
To make a move
“We are truly committed to building a sustainable future as demonstrated by our continued R&D efforts to continuously offer state-of-the-art technologies to generate reliable biomass-generated clean energy.”
“This relentless pursuit of renewable energy technology makes us a leading provider of reliable, economic, high efficiency renewable energy production solutions in the palm oil industry to make palm oil mill operations greener and make money in the process.”
It makes Economic Sense!
The proposed technologies yield an IRR of up to a whopping 20% on capital investment. This by itself makes it worthwhile to take a serious look at these technologies. Saving the planet can come later – the icing on the cake, so to speak. If you’re interested, drop us a line.